Employment growth is set to continue into the second quarter of 2013, according to the latest Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) survey report.

The report found that the net employment balance – the difference between the proportion of employers who expect an increase in staff and those who anticipate a reduction – has increased from +5 to +9. For the private sector this figure rises to +21, up from +16 in the previous quarter. These figures are not just for jobs in London, but across the UK.

However, the survey found that an average of 45 applicants were applying for every low-skilled job, making the labour market what it called a ‘battleground’, particularly for non-skilled jobs. As onrec.com points out, the results are consistent with reports of employers being inundated with applications.

The survey highlighted certain social groups were being excluded from the recruitment process, with 11 per cent of employers saying that they would not recruit long-term unemployed people and 14 per cent saying they would not consider employing a school leaver.

“However, with the projected increase of half a million people in the UK population over the next 12 months, the number of jobs being created may fail to keep pace with the population growth,” Davies added.